Funding axe falls on Indigenous training scheme

A training program for some of Queensland's most disadvantaged Indigenous youths has had its federal funding slashed.

The Beyond Billabong program based at Longreach has helped hundreds of Indigenous boys and girls from remote communities, including Doomadgee and Normanton, since it started in 2009.

CEO Boyd Curran says it has had to cut 80 per cent of its staff - from 40 down to about 10.

He says it is a great disappointment but funding from mining companies and other industry partners may be an option for the future.

"We had a tremendous time delivering programs and it was everything we ever dreamed of doing but at the end of the day, fiscal realities have said that they can't afford to continue to fund us to the level that they were," he said.

"We are looking at how we can adapt, diversify.

"I think that industry partnerships is definitely a way for the future and we will be talking with the Queensland Government.

"Beyond Billabong takes on participants that no-one else will take on.

"We are funded under the Indigenous employment program, which is all about getting jobs and outcomes but due to the level of disadvantage some of our people have when they come to us, a lot of the time it is as simple as giving people hope and keeping them alive.

"We deal with issues that most other people and organisations run away from."